It's just too damn expensive!

[KaiRai]

So I passed my driving test in November (Joy right?)

Well apparently not, as after passing my test I was looking at insurance quotes for cars. I decided on a 1.3 diesel vauxhall corsa, as diesels are less powerful and get good mileage. Car was advertised for a reasonable £900. I checked insurance quotes, and imagine my shock at being quoted OVER £5500! In all seriousness! I could scarcely believe my eyes at the quote and thought it was obvious extortion. Till I realised that was the cheapest I could get it anywhere, with big brands who claim to beat your quotes, quoting me £9000. Then having the cheek to call up and ask if I'd accept it, claiming "I wouldn't find it cheaper anywhere else"

Young people are gettign a very raw deal in the UK atm, and its making me think that there IS a war on against the young people in the UK, as checking prices for a 1.4 around 8 months ago yielded results of £2700.

So tell me Escapists, what do you think we as people are being grossly overcharged for?

 

[x0ny]

Reduce your engine size, my first car was 1.0 litres, petrol. Yeah diesels get good mileage but the fuel itself is way more expensive and the engine is noisier, so actually, the cost to run is the same as an unleaded car.

You might want to have a go at the Pass Plus scheme, which will help reduce the cost of insurance. Also, councils (my local council in Bath did) will actually reimburse you the cost of taking pass plus, you might wanna ask about that. Pass plus is just taking another 6 hours of lessons, covering stuff such as motorways, night driving and rural roads.

My first year of insurance cost only 780GBP, but I suppose I was 23 then, and you're 19/20.

OT: what else is overpriced? Medicine, considering how cheap it is to produce. Also banks charge stupid amounts just to get an itemised list of stuff you've spent on with your credit card. That's, CREDIT card, not debit card. I think Barclays was bragging that it only costs 5GBP to get a credit card statement. Ridiculous.

 

[CactiComplex]

I knew the prices were pretty steep, but that's just ridiculous. I'm due to sit my test next month and I thought I'd buy a car when (if...) I pass. If those are still the quote prices when I get around to it then there isn't a chance. I mean, who the hell can afford it? I appreciate that younger drivers who have recently passed their test will be subject to a higher quote, but not that high.

Looks like it's time to get my bike fixed up...

I can't think of anything else we're being overcharged for offhand, except maybe things like rent. Maybe it's just where I've been looking, and maybe it's because I've been looking for student accommodation, but it does seem that landlords charge more if you're in the 18-21 age range. Have they always done that though?

Money aside, I know there's a lot of discrimination going around based on a minorities that are giving the entire generation a bad reputation.

 

[KaiRai]

I did look at a 1.0l too, but this only dropped the price by £1500. With pass plus I'll only be able to get insurance on a 1.0 down to £3400, still an extortionate price to be able to own a car, along with tax, insurance and MOT, flies the costs up.

I totally agree with the medicine thing though, I got charged £7.20 for 15 antibiotics, which are apparently like 40p per unit to make? Beggars belief. Same with banks, it's no wonder they're all so loaded now. Along with bank charges. I doubt it costs them £20 to sort out correcting 60p into an overdraft.

 

[brumley53]

95% of everything is over priced, especially considering a fair amount of it is made by some poor asian kid who's payed 10 cents a day.

 

[imsdal]

Come to Norway and check our prices on cars and gas....

 

[redisforever]

This is why I don't drive. If you take the bus, twice a day, for the rest of your life, it will cost less than a brand new car, with insurance, gas, maintenence.

 

[Metal Brother]

Young people are gettign a very raw deal in the UK atm, and its making me think that there IS a war on against the young people in the UK, as checking prices for a 1.4 around 8 months ago yielded results of £2700.

Welcome to the world of risk management. ;-)

The insurance industry is based on complex math and a simple concept: don't take unnecessary risk. This concept boils down to this: ensure that the premiums that you charge for any group are greater than the potential payoff for that group.

This hits younger drivers particularly hard because they are a horrible risk. Teenage males in particular are dramatically more likely to be in accidents than any other group. This means that in order to offer insurance without breaking their risk models, the insurance companies need to charge a much higher premium. And yes, this sucks, but it is nothing new and nothing unique to the UK.

How do you work around it? Learn more about the other variables that affect your insurance rate. You may be able to get a different type of car, or take a defensive driving course (this makes a big difference in the US, but I don't know if there is any parallel in the UK) or register the car in a different city, or get a sex change operation. (Just joking about the last one - I assume this would cost more than the auto insurance ;-)

Good luck!

 

[lacktheknack]

This is why I don't drive. If you take the bus, twice a day, for the rest of your life, it will cost less than a brand new car, with insurance, gas, maintenence.

My bus fees have risen from $1.50 per ride to $2.80 in two years. Apparently, the only reliable price of transportation is walking.

 

[Tron-tonian]

Young drivers cost insurance companies more than elderly drivers, so yeah, you get to pony up for your ability (or lack thereof).

I think the biggest screwjob for youth is in education - charge an amount that most young people can't afford on their own, put near-usuary conditions on any loans that are made to allow youth to get an education.... it's a crappy deal all around.

 

[redisforever]

This is why I don't drive. If you take the bus, twice a day, for the rest of your life, it will cost less than a brand new car, with insurance, gas, maintenence.

My bus fees have risen from $1.50 per ride to $2.80 in two years. Apparently, the only reliable price of transportation is walking.

For us here north of Toronto, it's $3.25. I do have a monthly pass, which balances it out somewhat, and I can't really walk, cause I live about 20 minutes by bus away from school. And it's 20 minutes on a good day.

 

[OliverTwist72]

I pay about $1000 a yr in the US. Insurance rates for younger drivers are always higher since they have the most accidents.

 

[Jonluw]

snippolainen

You're complaining about what now?
The Citröen C4 Picasso my family is currently driving cost us more than 30,000 pounds. I don't even know if that's counting insurance.

Yeah, I live in Norway, half a litre of beer costs ca. 7 pounds/$11 here. Everything's expensive here.

 

[tharglet]

Teenage males in particular are dramatically more likely to be in accidents than any other group.

I've had this one proved to me when I was at school/uni. Most of the accidents I heard about were by teenage males.

Crazy the insurance is more than the car is worth :O. My first car was worth £3k, think insurance was less than £1k, but my insurance was probably nowhere near for the following reasons:
> Didn't drive until I graduated uni (no need to - I either walked, took the bus or cadged lifts)
> Female (nothing you can do about this)
> Car was kept in a low-crime area off the road (helps)

One thing that can help is having your parents as named drivers - stupid as this seems, it can reduce the cost. Some people risk having them as the main drivers, but if you do make a claim and they find this not to be the case, they may not cough up.

When looking at the quotes - look who underwrites the company. You'll find a massive number of insurers actually only boils down to a handful of companies.

 

[rockingnic]

That is why you kiss your parents ass as long as possible and stay on their insurance until you can afford your own or move out.

Teenage males in particular are dramatically more likely to be in accidents than any other group.

I've had this one proved to me when I was at school/uni. Most of the accidents I heard about were by teenage males.

Crazy the insurance is more than the car is worth :O. My first car was worth £3k, think insurance was less than £1k, but my insurance was probably nowhere near for the following reasons:
> Didn't drive until I graduated uni (no need to - I either walked, took the bus or cadged lifts)
> Female (nothing you can do about this)
> Car was kept in a low-crime area off the road (helps)

It's ironic because statistically, women get into more accents every 100,000 miles then men... At least here in the U.S.

 

[Geekosaurus]

And we wonder why so many people are driving around without insurance.